Be thoughtful with resources

Request an Energy Efficiency Toolkit

Why? BAYREN's free Energy Saving Toolkit is packed with products to upgrade your home and slash energy costs. Enjoy energy efficient light bulbs, water-saving aerators, and more—valued up to $70—and trim your monthly bills.

Resources: Energy Efficiency Toolkit | Bay Area Regional Energy Network

Use power during non-peak times

Why? Using power during non-peak times can lower your energy costs.

Resources: Maximizing Benefits from Off-Peak Hours: Tips and Insights

Install solar with battery (building owner)

Why? Solar is the fastest growing and most affordable source of new electricity in the US. Installing solar is not only a way to use clean, renewable energy, it will also make electrification more affordable. AMP is also offering a $500 rebate for income qualified customers who are installing solar in their homes.

Resources: Apply for a Building Permit | City of Alameda, Rebates and Incentives | Alameda Municipal Power, CA, Get Solar, Compare and save on clean home energy solutions

Take advantage of AMP rebates

Why? Alameda Municipal Power (AMP) offers rebates and resources to encourage residents make the switch to electric to make homes cleaner and greener by making use of AMP's 100% clean energy and rates 45% lower than PG&E.  

Resources: Rebates and Incentives | Alameda Municipal Power, CA

Capture water from sink & shower

Why? Capturing water is a pretty low-tech approach to conserving water, but it’s an easy, productive place to start.

Resources: Use the Water You Typically Throw Out in 5 Creative Ways, The Environmental Benefits of Using a Bucket in the Shower

Install greywater system (building owner)

Why? If 100 families installed a simple laundry-to-landscape greywater system, we could save 500,000 to 800,000 gallons of water a year and put that precious water into our gardens instead of sending it to the wastewater treatment plant.

Resources: Apply for a Building Permit | City of Alameda, Installing greywater systems, Greywater master handout (PDF)

Refurbish before replace (building owner)

Why? Using existing structures and materials is the best carbon-smart solution. Demolishing existing buildings and re-constructing new ones is a huge source of embodied carbon emissions and a waste of precious natural resources.

Resources: RE:Source | Your Online Guide for Reuse, Repair, Recycling, and Safe Disposal 

Use low-carbon concrete (building owner)

Why? It doesn’t get a lot of attention, but cement (used to make concrete) represents six to eight percent of global greenhouse gas emissions and is a really tough problem to solve. Manufacturing one ton of cement produces roughly one ton of CO2.

Resources: CONCRETE – Carbon Smart Materials Palette

Know your rent increase cap

Why? All multi-family properties built before February 1995 are subject to a cap on the amount of a rent increase.

Resources: FAQs – City of Alameda Rent Program

Know terms, rights, and resources

Why? To protect yourself and your resources as a renter it is essential to know and understand your lease term and your rights.

Resources: FAQs – City of Alameda Rent Program, State law, Temporary relocation, Petitions, Capital Improvement Plans, Guidebook, Before you rent, Pocket guide to Alameda Rent Program (PDF), HHS Prevention Resource Guide (PDF)

Consider flood/quake insurance (building owner)

Why? Alameda is a low-lying island susceptible to flooding and there is a 63% likelihood there will be a nearby earthquake with a magnitude of at least 6.7 (fallen buildings, broken gas and water lines, fires) in the next 30 years.

Resources: The National Flood Insurance Program, 2025 Best California Residential Earthquake Insurance Policies | CEA

Consider seismic retrofits (building owner)

Why? A residential seismic retrofit makes a house more resistant to earthquake activity.

Resources: Apply for a Building Permit | City of Alameda, Earthquake Retrofit Grants: Protect Your California Home | CRMP, Earthquake Soft-Story (ESS) Homeowner Registration is Now Open | City of Alameda

Consider floodproofing (building owner)

Why? Careful management of development in the floodplains results in construction practices that can reduce public and private flood losses.

Resources: Apply for a Building Permit | City of Alameda, Floodplain Management FAQ and Construction Guide Document (PDF)